Claridge’s and Daniel Humm to part ways as chef pursues vision for plant-based dining

Daniel Humm and Claridge’s have announced that they will end their culinary partnership in December 2021. The Swiss chef, who has been at the helm of the luxury London hotel’s restaurant Davies and Brook since 2019, is moving on to dedicate himself to plant-based cuisine – a path Claridge’s said it did not wish to follow.

“We completely respect and understand the culinary direction of a fully plant-based menu that Daniel has decided to embrace and champion and now wants to introduce in London,” read a statement posted on social media by Claridge’s. “However, this is not the path we wish to follow here at Claridge’s at the moment, and therefore, regretfully, we have mutually agreed to go our separate ways.”

The statement continued: “Daniel has been a long standing friend of the hotel for many years and we wish him nothing but continued success as he spearheads this bold new vision. Davies and Brook will continue to operate under his direction until the end of December 2021, and we will update on future plans at Claridge’s in due course.”

Humm, for his part, said in a statement of his own that he would commit himself to the pursuit of plant-based dining. “Over the last 18 months I’ve taken time to consider what our next chapter looks like,” he wrote on Instagram. “It has never been more clear that the world is changing, and we have to change with it.”

Humm, whose prestigious New York restaurant Eleven Madison Park offers an exclusively plant-based menu, called his time at the Michelin-starred Davies and Brook “a dream come true”, and praised the “dedicated and passionate team” led by Dmitri Magi and Anneka Brooks.

However, he concluded: “The future for me is plant-based. This is our mission and what we stand by as a company, and at this time this is not the direction that @claridgeshotel feels is right for them. It is with sadness now that we’ve mutually announced that we will go our separate ways at the end of this year. Standing behind this mission, and what we believe in, is most important and is unfortunately not something we can compromise on. I’ve never been more excited about cooking in my entire career and I’m excited for all that the future holds for us.”